Display device and method of manufacturing display device

ABSTRACT

A display device includes a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix. Each of the plurality of pixels includes a transistor and a pixel electrode arranged above the transistor through a first protective film and a second protective film. Among the plurality of pixels, the pixel electrodes of two pixels adjacent in a column direction are connected to corresponding source electrodes of the two pixels through second and third contact holes respectively. The second and third contact holes are formed in the first protective film within a first contact hole that is formed in the second protective film.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority from Japanese ApplicationJP2013-084676 filed on Apr. 15, 2013, the content of which is herebyincorporated by reference into this application.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a display device and a method ofmanufacturing a display device.

BACKGROUND

For example, as shown in the Japanese Patent Application Publication No.H09-230380, a display device is known that includes an organicprotective film which is formed to cover a TFT, a gate wiring and asource wiring and a pixel electrode which is formed on the organicprotective film. In the display device described above, a contact holeis provided in the organic protective film, and a source electrode andthe pixel electrode of the TFT are electrically connected through thecontact hole.

SUMMARY

Here, the organic protective film is formed of, for example,photosensitive resist material, and is formed to be thicker than otherinsulting films. The organic protective film is generally opened bydevelopment processing in an exposure step, and it is formed to bethicker as described above. Thus, it is impossible to open the organicprotective film with a small pattern dimension. Accordingly, thediameter of the contact hole provided in the organic protective film isincreased as compared with a contact hole provided in an inorganicinsulting film.

Hence, one or more embodiments of the present application has an objectto provide a display device including a plurality of contact holeswithin a contact hole of a larger diameter so as to enhance an apertureratio of a pixel, and a method of manufacturing such a display device.

In one general aspect, the instant application describes a displaydevice that includes a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix, each ofthe plurality of pixels including: a transistor; and a pixel electrodearranged above the transistor through a first protective film and asecond protective film. Among the plurality of pixels, the pixelelectrodes of two pixels adjacent in a column direction are connected tocorresponding source electrodes of the two pixels through second andthird contact holes respectively. The second and third contact holes areformed in the first protective film within a first contact hole that isformed in the second protective film. The above general aspect mayinclude one or more of the following features. The first protective filmmay be an inorganic insulting film, and the second protective film maybe an organic insulting film.

The display device may further include a plurality of gate wiringsarranged in a row direction of the plurality of pixels; and a pluralityof data wirings arranged in adjacent pairings in the column direction,with each set of adjacent pairings spaced further apart than a distancebetween the gate wirings of a given pairing.

Among the plurality of pixels, the transistors adjacent in the columndirection may be staggered in the row direction.

In another general aspect, the display device of the instant applicationincludes a transistor; a common electrode arranged above the transistorthrough a first protective film and a second protective film; a pixelelectrode stacked on the common electrode through an insulting film andbeing opposite to the common electrode; and a common electrode wiringconnected to the common electrode through the first protective film andthe second protective film. The pixel electrode and the common electrodeare connected to a source electrode of the transistor and the commonelectrode wiring through second and third contact holes respectively.The second and third contact holes are formed in the first protectivefilm and are positioned within a first contact hole that is formed inthe second protective film.

The above another general aspect may include one or more of thefollowing features. The first protective film may be an inorganicinsulting film, and the second protective film may be an organicinsulting film.

The common electrode wiring may be formed in the same layer as a gateelectrode of the transistor.

The display device may further include a gate insulting film formed onthe gate electrode and the common electrode. The second contact hole maybe formed in the first protective film and the gate insulting film. Thecommon electrode may be connected to the common electrode wiring throughthe second contact hole.

The third contact hole may be formed in the first protective film andthe insulting film. The pixel electrode may be connected to the sourceelectrode of the transistor through the third contact hole.

In another general aspect, a method of manufacturing a display device ofthe instant application includes: forming a gate wiring on a substrate;forming a gate insulting film on the substrate on which the gate wiringis formed; forming at least two adjacent transistors on the gateinsulting film; forming a protective film and an organic protective filmin this order on the gate insulting film on which the two transistorsare formed; forming a first contact hole in the organic protective film;forming a common electrode on the organic protective film; forming anupper insulting film on a region in which the first contact hole isformed and the common electrode; forming second and third contact holesin the protective film and the upper insulting film within the firstcontact hole, which are positioned above source electrodes of the twotransistors; and forming a pixel electrode on the upper insulting filmconfigured to cover the second and third contact holes and to be opposedto the common electrode.

In another general aspect, a method of manufacturing a display device ofthe instant application includes: forming a gate wiring and a commonelectrode wiring on a substrate; forming a gate insulting film on thesubstrate on which the gate wiring is formed; forming a transistor onthe gate insulting film; forming a protective film and an organicprotective film in this order on the gate insulting film on which thetransistor is formed; forming a first contact hole by removing an upperportion of the organic protective film; forming a second contact hole inthe protective film and the gate insulting film, which is positionedabove the common electrode wiring within a region in which the firstcontact hole is formed; forming a common electrode on the second contacthole and the organic protective film; forming an upper insulting film atthe region in which the first contact hole is formed and above thecommon electrode; forming a third contact hole in the upper insultingfilm and the protective film, which is formed above a source electrodeof the transistor positioned within the region in which the firstcontact hole is formed; and forming a pixel electrode on the upperinsulting film configured to cover the third contact hole and to bedirected to the common electrode.

The above another general aspect may include one or more of thefollowing features. The first contact hole and the second contact holemay be formed by a halftone exposure in the same step.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a display deviceaccording to a first embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a plan view of a plurality of pixels shown inFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of one pixel shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IVof FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a cross-sectional view taken along line V-Vof FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VIof FIG. 2.

FIG. 7A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 7B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 8A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 8B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 9A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 9B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 10A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 10B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 11A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 11B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 12A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 12B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 13A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 13B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a first embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 14 is a diagram for illustrating a display device according to asecond embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a region of one pixel in FIG. 14 and a regionincluding adjacent pixels.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a cross-sectional view takenalong line XVI-XVI of FIG. 15.

FIG. 17A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 17B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 18A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 18B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 19A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 19B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 20A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 20B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 21A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 21B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 22A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 22B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 23A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 23B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 24A is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 24B is a diagram for illustrating a method of manufacturing adisplay device according to a second embodiment of the presentapplication.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present application will be described below withreference to drawings. In the drawings, the same or similar elements areidentified with same symbols, and their description will not berepeated.

[First Embodiment]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a display deviceaccording to a first embodiment of the present application. As shown inFIG. 1, the display device LCD includes a gate wiring drive circuit 101,a data wiring drive circuit 102, a common electrode drive circuit 103and a pixel region DIA.

A gate voltage is supplied from the gate wiring drive circuit 101through gate wirings G1, G2, . . . and Gn and a video data voltage issupplied from the data wiring drive circuit 102 through data wirings D1,D2, . . . and Dm to the pixel region DIA as an active matrix display.Then, a thin film transistor TFT is turned on and off to feed a datavoltage to a pixel electrode. Then, by an electric field between acommon voltage supplied from the common electrode drive circuit 103 andthe data voltage, a liquid crystal layer LC is driven.

In order to prevent a voltage drop in the liquid crystal layer LC, aretention capacity STG is formed in each pixel region. The supply of thecommon voltage is transmitted to a common electrode wring MSL connectedto the common electrode drive circuit 103, and is propagated to thepixel region DIA with a transparent common electrode CT.

When a color display is performed, it is realized by applying thedesired data voltage to the data wirings D1 (R), D2 (G) and D3 (B)connected to the pixels of red (R), green (G) and blue (B), which areformed with a vertical striped color filter.

In the present embodiment, in the pixel arrangement of the activematrix, two gate wirings for vertically placed two pixels are arrangedparallel to each other, and one common electrode wring MSL is shared bythe vertically placed two pixels. With respect to the video data, in anodd-numbered row, the data voltage is supplied from the data wiring onthe left side of the pixels, and in an even-numbered row, the datavoltage is supplied from the data wiring on the right side of thepixels, and the pixels are arranged zigzag.

As described above, the two gate wirings are arranged side by side, andthe common electrode wring MSL is shared by the vertically placed twopixels, and thus the aperture ratio is enhanced as compared with a casewhere the common electrode wring MSL is arranged individually.

When for a one-screen selection period, the data voltage, which ispositive with respect to the common voltage, is applied to the datawiring D1, and, the data voltage, which is negative, is applied to thedata wiring D2, since the relationship between the thin film transistorTFTs and the data wirings DL is in a zigzag arrangement, the polarity ofthe pixel electrodes in one column is alternated between positive andnegative on an individual row basis. In this way, for the one-screenselection period, the voltage per data wiring has the same polarity, andthus it is possible to perform a driving method in which the variationin data and power consumption are low. Within the screen, positive andnegative pixel potentials are dispersed, and thus it is possible todisplay with a satisfactory image quality and to reduce flicker. Theconfiguration of the display device described above is one example, andthe present embodiment is not limited to this configuration.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a plan view of a plurality of pixels shown inFIG. 1. FIG. 2 specifically shows an example of a plan view in whichthree pixels in the horizontal direction and four pixels in the verticaldirection, that is, 12 pixels are extracted from the display deviceshown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of one pixel shown in FIG.2, and FIG. 4 shows an example of a cross-sectional view taken alongline IV-IV of FIG. 3. FIG. 5 shows an example of a cross-sectional viewtaken along line V-V of FIG. 2, and FIG. 6 shows an example of across-sectional view taken along line VI-V1 of FIG. 2.

The gate wiring GL is a wiring that supplies the gate voltage to thethin film transistor TFT, and the data wiring DL is a wiring thatsupplies a video voltage to the thin film transistor TFT. The commonelectrode wiring MSL supplies a common potential to the transparentcommon electrode CT.

In two of a plurality of pixels shown in FIG. 2, a black matrix BMformed with a first substrate SUB1 is shown as an example. The datawiring DL, the gate wiring GL and the thin film transistor TFT areblocked by the black matrix BM having a light shielding effect from theupper surface. The black matrix BM has an aperture portion in itscenter. Thus, the size (aperture ratio) of the aperture portion in onepixel is increased, and it is possible to realize the display devicethat is bright and has low power consumption.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, vertically placed twopixels share one common electrode wiring MSL. In the boundary betweenthe vertically placed two pixels, only the common electrode wiring MSLis disposed, the black matrix BM is not arranged, and the commonelectrode wiring MSL itself shields light. Hence, the variation of theaperture ratio based on placing the upper substrate on the lowersubstrate is reduced, so that the aperture ratio of each pixel isenhanced.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of vertically adjacent two pixels sandwichingtwo gate wirings GL in FIG. 2.

The gate wiring GL is formed with a low-resistant metal layer, and isconnected to the gate wiring drive circuit 101 shown in FIG. 1. On theother hand, the data wiring DL is also formed with a low-resistant metallayer, and a data voltage for video is applied.

When a gate-on voltage is supplied to the gate wiring GL, the resistanceof the semiconductor layer SEM of the thin film transistor is lowered.Thus, the voltage of the data wiring DL is transmitted to a sourceelectrode SM formed with a low-resistant metal layer, and is transmittedto a transparent pixel electrode PIT connected to the source electrodeSM. Here, the transparent pixel electrode PIT is formed with a firsttransparent electrode material ITO1.

The common voltage that is another voltage applied to the liquid crystallayer LC is applied from the common electrode drive circuit 103 of FIG.1 through the common electrode wiring MSL to the transparent commonelectrode CT. The transparent common electrode CT is formed with asecond transparent electrode material ITO2. The transparent pixelelectrode PIT and the transparent common electrode CT are stacked inlayers through an insulting film. Furthermore, in the transparent pixelelectrode PIT within the display region of one pixel, a slit is formed.In the slit, the electric field of the transparent pixel electrode PITis applied from the upper surface for the liquid crystal driving to theliquid crystal layer LC, and this electric field reaches the transparentcommon electrode CT to produce a display.

The source electrode SM is connected to the transparent pixel electrodePIT through a pixel electrode contact hole CONT formed at a protectivefilm PAS. For each of the transparent pixel electrodes PIT of thevertically placed two pixels, the pixel electrode contact hole CONT isformed. On the other hand, on the outside of the two pixel electrodecontact holes CONT, an organic film contact hole OCONT of an organicprotective film OPAS is formed. The positions and the like of theorganic film contact hole OCONT and the pixel electrode contact holeCONT will be described in detail later.

As described above, one organic film contact hole OCONT is shared by twopixels. By this sharing, it is possible to increase the aperture ratioof the pixel and thereby supply the display device LCD that is brightand has low power consumption.

The organic film contact hole OCONT is an aperture portion outline thatis formed at the organic protective film OPAS. The organic protectivefilm OPAS is formed of, for example, a photosensitive resist material.Its thickness at the time of application is, for example, 3 μm, and itis formed to be thick as compared with other insulting films and thelike. Although the organic protective film OPAS is opened by developmentprocessing in an exposure step, since its thickness is great, it isdifficult to open it with a small pattern dimension. Hence, when theorganic film contact hole is formed in each pixel, the aperture ratio ofthe pixel is reduced.

Hence, in the present embodiment, the source electrodes SM of adjacentpixels are arranged adjacently, and the organic film contact hole OCONTis formed to surround them. Thus, it is possible to improve the apertureratio and provide the display device LCD that is bright and has lowpower consumption. As described above, the two gate wirings GL arearranged side by side, and the pixel arrangement of the staggeredarrangement is formed in which the column of the thin film transistorsTFTs where the data voltage is supplied from the data wiring DL on theleft side and the column of the thin film transistors TFTs where thedata voltage is supplied from the data wiring DL on the right side arealternated on an individual row basis, so that it is possible to arrangetwo source electrodes SM laterally and in a compact manner. In this way,it is possible to reduce the side of the organic film contact hole OCONTitself.

An example of the configuration of the cross-section of the displaydevice according to the present embodiment will now be described. FIG. 4is a diagram showing an example of a cross-sectional view taken alongline IV-IV of FIG. 3. The cross-sectional configuration is the structureof a route in which, when for the semiconductor layers SEM of the twopixels, a data potential is supplied from the data wiring DL and anon-voltage is applied to the gate wiring GL, the resistance of thesemiconductor layers SEM is lowered, and this is transmitted from thesource electrode SM to the transparent pixel electrode PIT and isaccumulated in the retention capacity STG and the capacity of the liquidcrystal layer LC.

As shown in FIG. 4, two pixel electrode contact holes CONT forconnection from the two source electrodes SM of adjacent two thin filmtransistors TFTs to the transparent pixel electrode PIT are formedwithin the organic film contact hole OCONT formed at the outsidethereof. The pixel electrode contact hole CONT is formed on a stackedlayer of an upper layer insulting film UINS formed with, for example, asilicon nitride and the protective film PAS. As compared with theorganic film contact hole OCONT formed at the organic protective filmOPAS, the pixel electrode contact hole CONT can be processed to benarrow and have small dimensions.

On the other hand, the organic film contact hole OCONT is formed at theorganic protective film OPAS of the thick photosensitive resist. Asdescribed above, since the organic film contact hole OCONT cannot beprocessed so as to have small dimensions, the organic film contact holeOCONT is formed into one so as to surround the two small pixel electrodecontact holes CONT. Thus, it is possible to enhance the aperture ratio.

Here, the liquid crystal layer LC is sandwiched between the firstsubstrate SUB1 and a second substrate SUB2 that are two transparentsubstrates. The liquid crystal layer LC is filled with a positive liquidcrystal in which the longitudinal axes of liquid crystal molecules arealigned along the direction of an electric field. The thickness of theliquid crystal layer LC is, for example, 3 to 4 μm.

The first substrate SUB1 and the second substrate SUB2 are formed of,for example, glass. Although the thickness of the first substrate SUB1and the second substrate SUB2 is, for example, 0.4 to 0.7 mm in amanufacturing process, they are finally chemically polished after theformation of the first and second transparent substrates in which theliquid crystal layer LC is sealed, and the thickness may be so thin asto be, for example, about 0.2 mm. As the material of the first substrateSUB1 and the second substrate SUB2, plastic or the like may be usedinstead of glass.

A first polarization plate POL and a second polarization plate POL areadhered to the outside of the first substrate SUB1 and the secondsubstrate SUB2. Hence, light from a backlight outside the secondpolarization plate POL is polarized, the light is thereafter passedthrough the liquid crystal and the light is formed into oval polarizedlight by the optical birefringence effect of the liquid crystal layerLC. Thereafter, when the light passes through the first polarizationplate POL on the outside of the first substrate SUB1, the light passesthrough it as linear polarized light.

In the present embodiment, for example, the first polarization plate POLand the second polarization plate POL are adhered such that theirpolarizing axes are perpendicular to each other (so-called cross Nikos).Hence, when the liquid crystal is not in an electric field, even if thelight of the backlight passes through the liquid crystal layer LC, thefirst polarization plate POL interrupts the light, and thus it ispossible to produce a black display. When a voltage is mainly appliedbetween the transparent pixel electrode PIT and the transparent commonelectrode CT to apply an electric field to the liquid crystal layer LC,the liquid crystal layer LC converts the light into oval polarized lightby a birefringence operation, and thus it is possible to change itstransmittance according to its drive voltage, with result that it ispossible to produce a white display with a gray-scale display.

On both sides of the liquid crystal layer, a first alignment film AL anda second alignment film AL that can fix the liquid crystal moleculesthereto are formed. The alignment film AL is mainly formed of, forexample, polyimide. As a method of aligning the liquid crystal moleculeson the surfaces, for example, a method of performing rubbing or applyingpolarized ultraviolet rays is preferably used.

A color display is realized by passing light through a color filter CFin which a pigment formed on the first substrate SUB1 is used as acoloring layer. Since the pigment melts into the liquid crystal tobecome a contaminating source, its surface is coated with an overcoatfilm OC that is an organic material. The overcoat film OC also has theeffect of making the surface flat.

Depending on the type of semiconductor layer SEM, when external lightdirectly illuminates the semiconductor layer SEM, the resistance of thesemiconductor layer SEM is lowered, and thus the retaining property ofthe display device is lowered, with the result that a satisfactory imagedisplay may not be realized. Hence, the black matrix BM is formed on theupper surface of the semiconductor layer SEM of the first substrateSUB1.

The black matrix BM is also arranged in the boundary between the pixelsof the color filter CF, and has the effect of preventing the mixing ofcolors caused by the oblique viewing of the light of adjacent pixels andof displaying an image without being smeared.

However, when the width of the black matrix BM is excessively increased,the aperture ratio and the transmittance are reduced. Hence, in orderfor a high-definition display device to be bright and to have low powerconsumption, it is necessary to achieve such a minimum width that themixing of colors caused by oblique viewing is prevented. The blackmatrix BM is formed of, for example, a resin material or a metallicmaterial using a black pigment.

As described with reference to FIG. 3, within one pixel, the drivevoltage is applied to the transparent pixel electrode PIT in a casewhere the liquid crystal layer LC is regarded as a capacitor. Theon-voltage is first applied the gate wiring GL formed with a metallayer. The gate wiring GL is formed of, for example, a metallic materialhaving, as a main component, aluminum Al, molybdenum Mo, titanium Ti orcopper Cu, a plurality of stacked layers described above, an ally inwhich tungsten W, magnesium Mn or the like is added to the metallicmaterial described above or a stacked metal layer formed by acombination of those described above. Its thickness is, for example, 100to 300 nm.

On the upper portion of the gate wiring GL, a gate insulting film GSN isformed. As the gate insulting film GSN, for example, a silicon nitrideformed with a plasma chemical vapor deposition method (CVD) is used. Thegate insulting film GSN may be formed of silicon dioxide SiO₂ or aluminaAl₂O₃.

On the gate wiring GL, the semiconductor layer SEM is processed into theshape of an island and is arranged. As the semiconductor layer material,for example, a combination of a silicon nitride and amorphous silicona-Si, a combination of silicon dioxide and an oxide semiconductor or alow-temperature poly-silicon LIPS is used. For example, as the oxidesemiconductor, an oxide of indium-gallium-zinc or the like is used.

At the end portions of the semiconductor layer SEM, the data wiring DLand the source electrode SM are formed. As the data wiring DL and thesource electrode SM, for example, as described later, a low-resistantmetallic material formed in the same step is used. As the metallicmaterial, for example, a metallic material having, as a main component,aluminum Al, molybdenum Mo, titanium Ti or copper Cu, a plurality ofstacked layers described above, an ally in which tungsten W, magnesiumMn or the like is added to the metallic material described above or astacked metal layer formed by a combination of those described above isused.

The transparent pixel electrode PIT is connected onto the sourceelectrode SM. The transparent pixel electrode PIT has a plurality ofaperture portions (slits) within, for example, one-pixel region dividedby the gate wirings GL and the data wirings DL arranged in a matrix.With respect to the supply of the data voltage to the transparent pixelelectrode PIT, when the on-voltage is applied to the gate wiring GL, theresistance of the semiconductor layer SEM is lowered, and the datavoltage is transmitted from the data wiring DL through the sourceelectrode SM to the transparent pixel electrode PIT. Then, the voltagedescribed above is charged in the capacity of the transparent pixelelectrode PIT and the transparent common electrode CT.

On the data wiring DL and the source electrode SM, the protectiveinsulating film PAS is formed. As the protective insulting film PAS, forexample, a silicon nitride or silicon dioxide is used. Its thickness is,for example, 200 to 400 nm.

The protective film PAS is coated with the organic protective film OPAS.In the organic protective film OPAS described above, the organic filmcontact hole OCONT is formed. As the organic protective film OPASdescribed above, for example, a photosensitive resist having a thicknessof 3 μm is used. Its material is, for example, acrylic. Since theorganic protective film OPAS itself is photosensitive, the organic filmcontact hole OCONT can be opened and processed by exposure anddevelopment processing in the exposure step using a photo mask. Sincethe organic film contact hole OCONT is about 10 times as thick as theprotective film PAS of a silicon nitride, and its exposure sensitivityis lower than that of a normal photo resist, it is impossible to form asmall aperture portion. Hence, in the present embodiment, two pixelelectrode contact holes CONT in two pixels are arranged, and the organicfilm contact hole OCONT is provided on the outside thereof, and thus theaperture ratio is enhanced.

On the organic protective film OPAS, the transparent common electrode CTis formed. The transparent common electrode CT is formed with, forexample, the material of an indium-tin-oxide or an indium-zinc-oxide. Onthe transparent common electrode CT, for example, the upper portioninsulting film UINS formed of silicon nitride or silicon dioxide isformed. As with the transparent common electrode CT, the transparentpixel electrode PIT is formed of transparent electrode material such asan indium-tin-oxide, and is connected to the source electrode SM throughthe pixel electrode contact hole CONT formed at the upper portioninsulting film UINS.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a cross-sectional view takenalong line V-V of FIG. 3. Specifically, FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectionalview of a pixel sandwiched between two data wirings DL, and also shows across-sectional view of the adjacent pixel.

The pixel located in the center of FIG. 5 corresponds to the colorfilter CF (G) of green G in the vertically striped color filter CFarrangement. The left and right thereof correspond to the color filterCF (R) of red and the color filter CF (B) of blue.

In the boundary between the pixels in which the data wiring DL exists,the black matrix BM is formed on the inner surface of the firstsubstrate SUB1, sandwiching the liquid crystal layer LC. The data wiringDL and the black matrix BM described above prevent the mixing of colorscaused by viewing the light of the backlight of the adjacent pixel bytransmission when the pixel divided by the color filter CF is obliquelyviewed.

Although not shown in the figure, the light of the backlight is appliedto the second substrate from the outside of the polarization plateadhered to the outside of the second substrate SUB2. However, when thewidth of the data wiring DL and the black matrix BM is increased, theaperture ratio and the transmittance are lowered, with the result thatdisadvantageously, the display device is dimmed or the power consumptionis increased. In particular, since in a high-definition display device,such a problem is remarkable, a display device is desired in which theblack matrix BM and the data wiring DL are decreased in width and inwhich a display failure is unlikely to occur.

As shown in FIG. 5, division into two regions, that is, a boundaryregion of the pixels of the black matrix BM or the data wiring DL whichdoes not pass through light and an aperture region which passes throughlight is performed. The structure and the operation of the apertureregion will first be described.

In the aperture region, the video data voltage and the common voltageare applied between the transparent pixel electrode PIT and thetransparent common electrode CT, an electric field between theseelectrodes is applied to the liquid crystal layer LC and the ovalpolarization intensity of the liquid crystal layer LC is changed by itselectric field intensity to control the transmittance, with the resultthat a gray-scale display is produced. On the transparent secondsubstrate SUB2, the transparent pixel electrode PIT and the transparentcommon electrode CT are formed, and the electric field applied betweenthese two electrodes is propagated and thus the liquid crystal moleculesLCM are rotated horizontally to perform gray-scale control, with theresult that the display device of so-called in-plane switching (IPS) isachieved. A setting is performed such that when the maximum voltage isapplied between the two electrodes, the transmittance of the displaydevice is maximized. When the potential difference between thetransparent pixel electrode PIT and the transparent common electrode CTis decreased, the transmittance is lowered, with the result that a blackdisplay is produced. The transmittance is increased such that thepotential difference is maximized, and thus a white display is produced.The maximum transmittance when the maximum voltage is applied may besimply expressed as the transmittance.

The liquid crystal layer LC is filled with, for example, the liquidcrystal molecules LCM of organic material. On the surfaces of thealignment film. AL1 formed on the inner surface of the first substrateSUB1 and the alignment film AL2 formed on the inner surface of thesecond substrate SUB2, the longitudinal axes of the liquid crystalmolecules LCM are fixed by alignment processing. Electric lines of forceby such an electric field as to be returned through the upper insultingfilm UINS to the liquid crystal layer LC when the voltage between thetwo electrodes, that is, the transparent pixel electrode PIT and thetransparent common electrode CT is increased are formed from theaperture portion.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a cross-sectional view takenalong line VI-V1 of FIG. 3. In the electric field extending from thetransparent pixel electrode PIT to the transparent common electrode CTthrough the liquid crystal layer LC and the upper insulting film UINS,the common electrode wiring MSL is arranged in the center of theadjacent pixels for driving the liquid crystal layer LC.

The common electrode wiring MSL uses the low-resistant wiring materialto reduce a wiring delay in the transparent common electrode CT. Hence,the common electrode wiring MSL is connected to the transparent commonelectrode CT.

The common electrode wiring MSL is formed of, for example, a metallicmaterial having, as a main component, aluminum Al, molybdenum Mo,titanium Ti or copper Cu, a plurality of stacked layers described above,an ally in which tungsten W, magnesium Mn or the like is added to themetallic material described above or a stacked metal layer formed by acombination of those described above. Its thickness is, for example, 50to 200 nm.

The common electrode wiring MSL is arranged so as to be directlyconnected onto the transparent common electrode in which the organicprotective film OPAS is coated, over a plurality of pixels, with thedata wiring DL and the gate wiring GL. Furthermore, between verticallyplaced pixels, its arrangement is shared by one region. Thus, ascompared with a method in which the common electrode wiring MSL isarranged per pixel, since the arrangement can be performed without thewiring width being changed, it is possible to enhance the apertureratio. Since the common electrode wiring MSL is formed of opaquematerial, it is possible to divide the boundary between the pixelswithout arranging the black matrix BM on the first substrate SUB1. Sincein general, the accuracy of locating the first substrate SUB1 and thesecond substrate SUB2 vertically placed is low, when the black matrix BMis not necessary, the aperture ratio can be improved.

A method of manufacturing the display device according to the presentembodiment will now be described. FIGS. 7 to 13 are diagrams forillustrating the method of manufacturing the display device according tothe present embodiment. FIGS. 7A to 13A correspond to the steps of theplan view of FIG. 3, and FIGS. 7B to 13B show the correspondingcross-sectional views of FIGS. 7A to 13A.

FIG. 7A shows a plan view of the vertically adjacent two pixels of FIG.3 after the completion of the first photo-step of the thin filmtransistor TFT. FIG. 7B shows a cross-sectional view taken along lineVII-V11 of FIG. 7A. The adjacent gate wirings GL are formed into a filmby sputtering on the first substrate, and are patterned in the firstphoto-step. The gate wiring GL is a stacked film in which, for example,molybdenum Mo is formed into a film on the copper of 100 nm to 300 nm.As the wiring material, for example, not only copper Cu but also astacked film of molybdenum Mo and aluminum Al, a stacked film oftitanium Ti and aluminum Al, an alloy MoW of molybdenum Mo and tungstenW and the like can be used.

FIGS. 8A and 8B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when asecond photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, forexample, on the gate wiring GL, the gate insulting film GSN of siliconnitride and the semiconductor layer SEM of amorphous silicon are stackedin layers by CVD. The thickness of the gate insulting film GSN and thesemiconductor layer SEM are, for example, about 400 nm and 200 nm,respectively. Then, a photoresist is formed from the upper portion ofthe CVD film described above, exposure is performed with a photo maskand thus the region of the semiconductor layer SEM is formed.

FIGS. 9A and 9B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when a thirdphoto-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, for example, onthe upper portion of the semiconductor layer SEM, a stacked film ofmolybdenum Mo and copper Cu is formed by sputtering into a film. As thematerial of the stacked film, for example, as with the material of thegate wiring GL, a three-layer film of molybdenum Mo, aluminum Al andmolybdenum Mo, a stacked film of titanium Ti and aluminum Al, an MoWalloy or the like can be used. Then, this is processed by thephoto-step, and thus the regions of the data wiring DL and the sourceelectrode SM are formed.

FIGS. 10A and 10B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when afourth photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B, on thedata wiring DL and the source electrode SM, the protective film. PAS isformed by CVD, and then the organic protective film OPAS ofphotosensitive acrylic is coated. The protective film PAS is formed of,for example, silicon nitride, and its thickness is, for example, 200 to400 nm. Since the material of the photosensitive acrylic itself can beused as the photoresist in the photo-step, the aperture portion isformed on the source electrode SM with a photo mask by developmentprocessing.

The thickness of the organic protective film OPAS is, for example, 3000nm (3 μm), and the organic protective film OPAS is thicker than theprotective film PAS. This is because the organic protective film OPAS isa coated film. However, since the relative permittivity of the organicprotective film OPAS is so low as to be 2 to 4, even when the organicprotective film OPAS is formed on the data wiring DL, and thetransparent common electrode CT is further formed on its upper portionover the entire surface of a plurality of pixel regions, it is possibleto reduce the wiring capacity of the data wiring DL, to realizesatisfactory image quality with little wiring delay and to reduce thepower consumption for the drive. However, since the exposure sensitivityis lower than that of a normal photoresist, the pattern dimension of theaperture portion is increased, with the result that conversely, theaperture ratio is likely to be reduced. In the present embodiment, asdescribed above, the organic film contact hole OCONT of the organicprotective film OPAS is formed so as to surround the pixel electrodecontact holes CONT of the thin film transistors TFTs over a plurality ofpixel regions, and thus the aperture ratio is enhanced.

FIGS. 11A and 11B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when afifth photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, forexample, a third transparent electrode material of indium-tin-oxide,which is a transparent electrode material, is formed into a film, andthe transparent common electrode CT is formed on the organic protectivefilm OPAS through a photo-etching step.

FIGS. 12A and 12B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when asixth photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B, forexample, the upper insulting film UINS is formed on the transparentcommon electrode CT by CVD. Then, the pixel electrode contact hole CONT,which is the aperture portion, is formed. The pixel electrode contacthole CONT is formed through the photo-step and a dry-etching step on theinsulating film in which the protective film PAS and the upper insultingfilm UINS on the source electrode SM of the vertically placed pixels arestacked in layers.

FIGS. 13A and 13B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when aseventh photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B, anindium-tin-oxide ITO1 that is the material of the transparent pixelelectrode PIT is formed into a film, and then, the transparent pixelelectrode PIT is formed by photo-etching.

The pixel electrode contact hole CONT that connects the transparentpixel electrode PIT and the source electrode SM is formed within theorganic film contact hole OCONT of the organic protective film OPAS. Aplurality of pixel electrode contact holes CONT are formed within theorganic film contact hole OCONT, and thus the aperture ratio isenhanced.

As described above, it is possible to form the display device of thepresent embodiment. In the above description, only the steps ofmanufacturing the so-called TFT substrate (the second substrate SUB2)are discussed, and since the steps of manufacturing the color filtersubstrate (the first substrate SUB1) and the like are known, theirdescription are omitted.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above,and may be replaced with the substantially same configuration as thatdescribed in the embodiment, a configuration having the same effect ofoperation or a configuration that can achieve the same object.

[Second Embodiment]

FIG. 14 is a diagram for illustrating a display device according to asecond embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 14, as inthe first embodiment described above, the display device LCD includesthe gate wiring drive circuit 101, the data wiring drive circuit 102,the common electrode drive circuit 103 and the pixel region DIA. Thepresent embodiment mainly differs from the first embodiment in that thegate wirings are not arranged adjacently every two gate wirings, andthat the common electrode wiring MSL is not shared.

As in the first embodiment, a scanning voltage is supplied from scanning(gate) wirings G1, G2, . . . and Gn and a video data voltage is suppliedfrom data wirings D1, D2, . . . and Dn to the pixel region DIA. Then,the thin film transistor TFT is turned on and off to feed the datavoltage to the liquid crystal layer LC, and an electric field betweenthis and the common voltage drives the liquid crystal layer LC. In orderto prevent a voltage drop in the liquid crystal layer LC, the retentioncapacity STG is formed in each pixel region. The supply of the commonvoltage is propagated to the screen region of the common electrodewiring MSL and the transparent common electrode CT connected thereto.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a region of one pixel surrounded by the thinfilm transistor TFT, the gate wiring GL and the data wiring DL in FIG.14 and a region including adjacent pixels therearound.

As in the first embodiment, the gate wiring GL is formed with alow-resistant metal layer. The gate wiring GL is connected to the gatewiring drive circuit 101 of FIG. 14, and the scanning voltage isapplied. On the other hand, the data wiring DL is also formed with alow-resistant metal layer. A data voltage for video is applied to thedata wiring DL.

When a gate-on voltage is supplied to the gate wiring GL, the resistanceof the semiconductor layer SEM of the thin film transistor is lowered.Thus, the voltage of the data wiring DL is transmitted to the sourceelectrode SM formed with the low-resistant metal layer, and istransmitted to the transparent pixel electrode PIT connected throughthis and the pixel electrode contact hole CONT.

The common voltage that is another voltage applied to the liquid crystallayer is transmitted from the common drive electrode drive circuit 103of FIG. 14 to the common electrode wiring MSL, and is further applied tothe transparent common electrode CT through a common electrode contacthole CCONT formed at an insulating film. The transparent pixel electrodePIT includes an electrode portion having a predetermined width and aslit (aperture portion) within a planar region. In the slit, theelectric field of the transparent pixel electrode PIT is applied fromthe upper surface for the liquid crystal driving to the liquid crystallayer, and this electric field reaches the transparent common electrodeCT through the liquid crystal and the insulting film to produce adisplay.

As in the first embodiment, two contact holes are provided within theorganic film contact hole OCONT. However, the second embodiment differsfrom the first embodiment in that one of these contact holes is thepixel electrode contact hole CONT connecting the source electrode SM andthe transparent pixel electrode PIT and the other is the commonelectrode contact hole CCONT connecting the common electrode wiring MSLand the transparent common electrode CT.

The pixel electrode contact hole CONT and the common electrode contacthole CCONT that are these two contact holes are provided within the oneorganic film contact hole OCONT, and thus even when the organic filmcontact hole OCONT is used in which it is impossible to perform minutedimension processing and hence the aperture portion is increased insize, it is possible to enhance the aperture ratio.

The transparent common electrode CT is formed in the pixel region DIAover a plurality of pixels. The organic film contact hole OCONTdescribed above is shared, and thus it is possible to enhance theaperture ratio and to supply a display device LCD that is bright and haslow power consumption.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a cross-sectional view takenalong line XVI-XVI of FIG. 15. The cross-sectional view corresponds tothe adjacent two pixel regions. Specifically, the structure of a routeis shown in which, in one of the pixel regions, when a data potential issupplied from the data wiring DL and an on-voltage is applied to thegate wiring GL, the resistance of the semiconductor layers SEM islowered, and this is transmitted from the source electrode SM to thetransparent pixel electrode PIT and is accumulated in the retentioncapacity STG and the capacity of the liquid crystal layer LC. In theother pixel region, the structure of a route is shown in which thecommon electrode wiring MSL and the transparent common electrode CT areconnected.

The pixel electrode contact hole CONT connecting the source electrode SMand the transparent pixel electrode PIT and the common electrode contacthole CCONT connecting the common electrode wiring MSL and thetransparent common electrode CT in the adjacent pixel are formed withinthe organic film contact hole OCONT formed at the outside thereof. Thepixel electrode contact hole CONT and the common electrode contact holeCCONT are formed in, for example, the stacked film of the protectivefilm PAS formed with a thin silicon nitride and the upper insulting filmUINS or the stacked layer of the protective film PAS and the gateinsulting film GSN. As described above, the pixel electrode contact holeCONT can be processed to be narrow and have small dimensions.

On the other hand, as described above, the organic film contact holeOCONT is formed at the organic protective film OPAS of the thickphotosensitive resist. As described above, since the organic filmcontact hole OCONT cannot be processed so as to have small dimensions,the organic film contact hole OCONT is formed into one so as to surroundthe two small pixel electrode contact holes CONT. Thus, it is possibleto perform the arrangement without loss of the aperture ratio.

A method of manufacturing the display device according to the presentembodiment will now be described. FIGS. 17 to 24 are diagrams forillustrating the method of manufacturing the display device according tothe present embodiment. FIGS. 17A to 24A correspond to the steps of theplan view of FIG. 15, and FIGS. 17B to 24B show the correspondingcross-sectional views of FIGS. 17A to 24A. Specifically, FIGS. 17B to24B show the steps of manufacturing the thin film transistor TFT formedon the first substrate SUB1, the wiring region and the aperture portion.The individual figures are basically shown per photo(exposure)-processing step in the TFT step described above. However,since the fourth photo-step is complicated, it is divided into two andis shown in FIGS. 20 and 21.

FIG. 17A shows a plan view of the pixel shown in FIG. 15 after thecompletion of the first photo-step of the thin film transistor TFT, andFIG. 17B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII of FIG.17A. As shown in FIGS. 17A and 17B, the gate wiring GL is formed into afilm by sputtering on the first substrate, and is patterned in the firstphoto-step. The gate wiring GL is a stacked film in which, for example,molybdenum Mo is formed into a film on the upper surface of the copperof a thickness of 100 nm to 300 nm. As the wiring material, for example,not only copper Cu but also a stacked film of molybdenum Mo and aluminumAl, a stacked film of titanium Ti and aluminum Al, an alloy MoW ofmolybdenum Mo and tungsten or the like can be used. On the other hand,the common electrode wiring MSL is processed in the same step with thesame metallic material as the gate wiring GL.

FIGS. 18A and 18B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when thesecond photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B, forexample, on the gate wiring GL, the gate insulting film GSN of siliconnitride and the semiconductor layer SEM of amorphous silicon are stackedin layers by CVD. Here, the thickness of the gate insulting film GSN andthe semiconductor layer SEM are, for example, about 400 nm and 200 nm,respectively. Then, a photoresist is formed from the upper portion ofthe CVD film described above, exposure is performed with a photo maskand thus the region of the semiconductor layer SEM is formed.

FIGS. 19A and 19B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when thethird photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 19A and 19B, forexample, on the upper portion of the semiconductor layer SEM, a stackedfilm of molybdenum Mo and copper Cu is formed by sputtering into a film.Here, as the material of the stacked film, for example, similar to thematerial of the gate wiring GL, a three-layer film of molybdenum Mo,aluminum Al and molybdenum Mo, a stacked film of titanium Ti andaluminum Al, an MoW alloy or the like can be used. Then, this isprocessed by the photo-step, and thus the regions of the data wiring DLand the source electrode SM are formed.

FIGS. 20A and 20B and 21A and 21B show plan views and cross-sectionalviews when the fourth photo-step is completed. Since this step iscomplicated, the plan view and the cross-sectional view in the middle ofthe step are shown in FIG. 20, and the plan view and the cross-sectionalview after the completion of the step are shown in FIG. 21.

As shown in FIGS. 20A and 20B, on the data wiring DL and the sourceelectrode SM, the protective film PAS is formed by CVD, and then theorganic protective film OPAS of photosensitive acrylic is coated. Here,the protective film PAS is formed of, for example, silicon nitride, andits thickness is, for example, 200 to 400 nm. Since the material of thephotosensitive acrylic itself can be used as the photoresist in thephoto-step.

Here, as the photo mask, a photo mask using a halftone is used. In otherwords, since in the portion of the common electrode contact hole CCONT,there is no light shielding film in the photo mask, it is possible toremove the organic protective film OPAS of the photosensitive acrylicmaterial with development processing. On the other hand, as comparedwith the organic protective film OPAS of the portion of CCONT, theorganic protective film OPAS of a portion HPHOT where a light shieldingfilm exists as the photo mask has a thicker film even after thedevelopment processing.

Within the aperture region of the organic protective film OPAS, a regionto be exposed using a metallic film obtained by reducing the lightshielding effect of the photo mask is formed. Hence, in this regionwidth HPHOT, the photosensitive acrylic is slightly exposed, and theorganic protective film OPAS is developed from the upper portion andremains as the thin organic protective film OPAS.

The development processing of the halftone exposure as described aboveis performed, and dry etching is further performed using this organicprotective film OPAS as the resist. In this way, the protective film PASand the gate insulting film GSN are processed and removed, and thus thecommon electrode contact hole CCONT is formed.

Then, as shown in FIGS. 21A and 21B, asking processing is performed tocut the organic protective film OPAS so as to be thin. With thisprocessing, the organic protective film OPAS of the region HPHOT that isformed to be thin by the half exposure is removed. As found from FIGS.21A and 21B, within the organic film contact hole OCONT, the regionwhere the thin organic protective film OPAS is left is removed.

FIGS. 22A and 22B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when thefifth photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 22A and 22B, in orderto form the transparent common electrode CT, the third transparentelectrode material of indium-tin-oxide that is a transparent electrodematerial is formed into a film. Through the photo-etching step, thetransparent common electrode CT is formed on the common electrodecontact hole CCONT formed on the organic protective film OPAS and thecommon electrode wiring MSL. In this way, the transparent commonelectrode CT and the common electrode wiring MSL are connected, theresistance of the transparent common electrode CT is reduced and thus itis possible to realize satisfactory image quality without any wiringdelay even in a large screen.

FIGS. 23A and 23B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when thesixth photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 23A and 23B, the upperinsulting film UINS is formed on the transparent common electrode CT byCVD. Then, the pixel electrode contact hole CONT is formed on theprotective film PAS and the upper insulting film. UINS. Specifically,the pixel electrode contact hole CONT is formed by subjecting theinsulting film where the protective film PAS on the source electrode SMand the upper insulting film UINS are stacked in layers to thephoto-step and the dry etching step.

FIGS. 24A and 24B show a plan view and a cross-sectional view when theseventh photo-step is completed. As shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B, anindium-tin-oxide ITO1 that is the material of the transparent pixelelectrode PIT is formed into a film, and then, the transparent pixelelectrode PIT is formed by photo-etching. Here, the pixel electrodecontact hole CONT that is the aperture portion connecting thetransparent pixel electrode PIT and the source electrode SM is formedwithin the organic film contact hole OCONT of the organic protectivefilm OPAS. As described above, the pixel electrode contact hole CONT andthe common electrode contact hole CCONT are formed within the organicfilm contact hole OCONT, and thus the aperture ratio is enhanced.

As described above, it is possible to form the display device of thepresent embodiment. In the above description, only the steps ofmanufacturing the so-called TFT substrate (the second substrate SUB2)are discussed, and since the steps of manufacturing the color filtersubstrate (the first substrate SUB1) and the like are known, theirdescription are omitted.

The present invention is not limited to the first and second embodimentsdescribed above, and may be replaced with the substantially sameconfiguration as those described in the first and second embodiments, aconfiguration having the same effect of operation or a configurationthat can achieve the same object. A first protective film and a secondprotective film as recited in the claims may correspond to, for example,the protective film PAS and the organic protective film OPAS,respectively. An insulting film as recited in claims may corresponds to,for example, the upper insulting film. UINS. Furthermore, a firstcontact hole as recited in the claims may corresponds to, for example,the organic film contact hole OCONT in the first and second embodiments,and second and third contact holes may correspond to, for example, thetwo pixel electrode contact holes CONT in the first embodiment or thepixel electrode contact hole CONT and the common electrode contact holeCCONT in the second embodiment.

What is claimed is:
 1. A display device comprising a plurality of pixelsarranged in a matrix, each of the plurality of pixels including: atransistor; and a pixel electrode arranged above the transistor througha first protective film and a second protective film, wherein among theplurality of pixels, the pixel electrodes of two pixels adjacent in acolumn direction are connected to corresponding source electrodes of thetwo pixels through second and third contact holes respectively, andwherein the second and third contact holes are formed in the firstprotective film within a first contact hole that is formed in the secondprotective film.
 2. The display device of claim 1, wherein the firstprotective film is an inorganic insulting film, and the secondprotective film is an organic insulting film.
 3. The display device ofclaim 1, further comprising: a plurality of gate wirings arranged in arow direction of the plurality of pixels; and a plurality of datawirings arranged in the column direction of the plurality of pixels,wherein the plurality of gate wirings are arranged in adjacent pairingsin the column direction, with each set of adjacent pairings spacedfurther apart than a distance between the gate wirings of a givenpairing.
 4. The display device of claim 1, wherein among the pluralityof pixels, the transistors adjacent in the column direction arestaggered in the row direction.
 5. A display device comprising: atransistor; a common electrode arranged above the transistor through afirst protective film and a second protective film; a pixel electrodestacked on the common electrode through an insulting film and beingopposite to the common electrode; and a common electrode wiringconnected to the common electrode through the first protective film andthe second protective film, wherein the pixel electrode and the commonelectrode are connected to a source electrode of the transistor and thecommon electrode wiring through second and third contact holesrespectively, and wherein the second and third contact holes are formedin the first protective film and are positioned within a first contacthole that is formed in the second protective film.
 6. The display deviceof claim 5, wherein the first protective film is an inorganic insultingfilm, and the second protective film is an organic insulting film. 7.The display device of claim 5, wherein the common electrode wiring isformed in the same layer as a gate electrode of the transistor.
 8. Thedisplay device of claim 5, further comprising: a gate insulting filmformed on the gate electrode and the common electrode, wherein thesecond contact hole is formed in the first protective film and the gateinsulting film, and wherein the common electrode is connected to thecommon electrode wiring through the second contact hole.
 9. The displaydevice of claim 5, wherein the third contact hole is formed in the firstprotective film and the insulting film, and wherein the pixel electrodeis connected to the source electrode of the transistor through the thirdcontact hole.
 10. A method of manufacturing a display device,comprising: forming a gate wiring on a substrate; forming a gateinsulting film on the substrate on which the gate wiring is formed;forming at least two adjacent transistors on the gate insulting film;forming a protective film and an organic protective film in this orderon the gate insulting film on which the two transistors are formed;forming a first contact hole in the organic protective film; forming acommon electrode on the organic protective film; forming an upperinsulting film on a region in which the first contact hole is formed andthe common electrode; forming second and third contact holes in theprotective film and the upper insulting film within the first contacthole, which are positioned above source electrodes of the twotransistors; and forming a pixel electrode on the upper insulting filmconfigured to cover the second and third contact holes and to be opposedto the common electrode.
 11. A method of manufacturing a display device,comprising: forming a gate wiring and a common electrode wiring on asubstrate; forming a gate insulting film on the substrate on which thegate wiring is formed; forming a transistor on the gate insulting film;forming a protective film and an organic protective film in this orderon the gate insulting film on which the transistor is formed; forming afirst contact hole by removing an upper portion of the organicprotective film; forming a second contact hole in the protective filmand the gate insulting film, which is positioned above the commonelectrode wiring within a region in which the first contact hole isformed; forming a common electrode on the second contact hole and theorganic protective film; forming an upper insulting film at the regionin which the first contact hole is formed and above the commonelectrode; forming a third contact hole in the upper insulting film andthe protective film, which is formed above a source electrode of thetransistor positioned within the region in which the first contact holeis formed; and forming a pixel electrode on the upper insulting filmconfigured to cover the third contact hole and to be directed to thecommon electrode.
 12. The method of manufacturing a display device ofclaim 11, wherein the first contact hole and the second contact hole areformed by a halftone exposure in the same step.
 13. The display deviceof claim 3, wherein the two pixels adjacent in the column direction areformed between two sets of the gate wirings of the given pairing. 14.The display device of claim 3, wherein the second and third contactholes are formed between the gate wirings of the given pairing.